It is well known that vacuum cleaners typically fall in three categories, routinely referred to as uprights, canisters, and sticks. Upright vacuum cleaners are generally perceived as providing superior floor care, while canisters provide a certain degree of flexibility in use, accommodating both floor care and above floor cleaning. Stick cleaners are generally perceived as providing for quick cleanup of floor surfaces and the like, and are appreciated for their ease of storage and ready availability.
The present trend in vacuum cleaners is to provide uprights with above-floor cleaning capabilities. To extend the utility of upright cleaners to this arena, a hose, wands, and associated tools must typically be provided. Such a combination allows the vacuum cleaner to perform the outstanding floor care typically characterizing an upright cleaner, while also providing the flexibility of utility which has previously characterized canister cleaners. The storage of the hose and associated tools implemented with the vacuum cleaner is critical so that the same are readily available for immediate use, but without impeding the operability of the cleaner itself.
In the vacuum cleaner art, the mounting and storage of cords and hoses on the cleaner is well known. The implementation of separated receiving hooks for electrical power cords is known from U.S. Pat. No. 2,003,147, while the provision of a quick release mechanism for such power cords is shown by U.S. Pat. No. 2,946,071. Additionally, the side mounting of the vacuum hose on an upright cleaner in which a single wrap of the hose is provided on an extensive continuous contoured receptacle is shown in U.S. Pat. No. Des. 313,681. However, a single wrap of hose is sufficient only for an extendable or stretchable hose. For hoses which can not be elongated in use, the size or number of wraps must be increased, while remaining unobstructive to the utility of the cleaner.
Despite the prior teachings, there is an absence in the vacuum cleaner art of a hose rack for an upright cleaner which accommodates substantial hose length in a compact area by spirally wrapping the hose upon itself There is particularly absent such a hose rack in which the spiral wrap of the hose is vertically stacked upon itself. There is also absent such a hose rack in which the spiral wrap of the hose is horizontally wound upon itself. There is also absent such a rack which allows for the quick release of the hose for access in use. The art is in need of a hose rack which fills the voids identified above and which allows for an orderly storage of the hose upon a rack which is simplistic in design, inexpensive to construct, and easy to implement with presently existing upright vacuum cleaners.